Sainsbury’s is to create 900 jobs at its new online fulfilment centre in Bromley-by-Bow, East London.
The 185,000 sqft centre, which is due to open this autumn, forms part of the retailer’s strategy to enable its customers to shop whenever and wherever they want, and will cater for the growing demand in the capital for Sainsbury’s online groceries service.
Recruitment has just begun for the first 470 jobs and the retailer plans to recruit another 430 colleagues by 2020. The roles are a mixture of drivers, order pickers, product replenishers and managers.
Robbie Feather, Sainsbury’s Director of Online, said, “Demand for our online delivery service in the capital continues to grow. We expect this trend to continue as more and more customers enjoy the flexibility of multi-channel shopping using our groceries website and app, in addition to visiting stores.
'Our online orders are currently picked from supermarket stores across the UK and this model will continue, but the Bromley-by-Bow Centre will help us keep pace with demand in London, enabling us to fulfil another 25,000 orders per week.”
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “It is fantastic news that Sainsbury is creating 900 new jobs for Londoners. This investment is further evidence that London is open and the best city in the world in which to do business.”
The fulfilment centre is being created at the former Royal Mail building, which is being completely redeveloped and fitted with the latest automation and picking technology.
To serve customers whenever and wherever they want to shop, Sainsbury’s is also trialling same day online grocery deliveries at three stores in London and the SouthEast.
The three stores taking part in the trial are Sainsbury’s Streatham Common, Richmond and Brookwood in Surrey. Customers who order by 12pm will be able to receive their shopping in four to six hours, dependent upon whether they choose to ‘Click & Collect’, or book a home delivery. Assuming the trials are successful, same-day online grocery delivery will be available in 30 stores by Christmas.
Feather said, “As our online sales grow we are seeing an increasing proportion of orders placed for next day delivery, so this trial is a natural next step in delivering our strategy to help customers shop whenever and wherever they want.”
Sainsbury’s launched its online grocery business in 1999 and, by 2013, sales had reached £1billion. Since then demand has continued to grow. Last year sales grew by nearly nine per cent and orders grew by nearly 15 per cent. The retailer recently announced plans to double the number of Click & Collect Groceries sites by the end of the next financial year, taking the total to 200.
Timings and charges for the same day delivery trial
Customers who order by 12pm will be able to pick up their orders from 4pm if they choose to ‘Click & Collect’, or receive their delivery at home from 6pm. There will be no additional charge for customers who have a Sainsbury's 'Delivery Pass'. The service is competitively priced for other customers and free for orders over £100 delivered Monday to Thursday.